James Espey was born in Zambia in 1943, the son of a police officer, and educated in South Africa before moving to London in 1977. He started his working life in the Spar grocery chain before moving into the liquor industry, in which he worked for many years for major companies. This included International Distillers & Vintners (IDV), which together with United Distillers, in 1997 merged to become the world’s number one liquor company, Diageo. Afterwards he had a stint working as Chairman of Chivas Bros. During this phase of his career, he had a hand in the development of premium whiskies such as Johnnie Walker Blue Label and Chivas Regal 18 Year Old, as well as original drink concepts such as Bailey’s, the blend of Irish whiskey and cream, and Malibu, the coconut-flavoured rum liqueur.
It tastes like heaven
He recalls the invention and promotion of Malibu as “especially great fun. At the time, IDV was a very innovative organisation and the South African subsidiary created a coconut-flavoured drink called Coco Rico.” Espey, as the Global Head of Marketing thought it had worldwide potential. The problem was that South Africa was a ‘pariah country’ under the apartheid regime and with Nelson Mandela in jail. So, Espey and his partner in innovation, Tom Jago, changed the name to Malibu, imported it from South Africa and called it ‘Caribbean style rum’. They then came up with the slogan ‘it comes from paradise and tastes like heaven.’ The rest is history. It now has a major distillery in Barbados and must be worth several billion dollars.
For the past two decades, Espey has been an entrepreneur in his own right, as well as a mentor to others. In 2013, James was awarded an Order of the British Empire for services to the whisky industry. Having also received a lifetime achievement award from his peers, he is particularly proud to have been involved in the creation of The Keepers of the Quaich, a society that honours those who make particular contributions to the world of whisky.
Fashion goes but style stays
An irrepressible communicator, James is the author of Making Your Marque, subtitled ‘100 Tips to Build your Personal Brand and Succeed in Business’. In contrast to most books on management, it is deliberately simple in style, though he says it took him 20 years to write. In essence, it’s a collection of anecdotes and bullet-point memoranda covering every aspect of starting and building a business, from cash flow and brand-building to punctuality and good manners. When you talk to him in person, he soon starts rattling off the kind of aphorisms that fill the book: “I always say it takes twice as long, and twice as much money as you ever thought, to break even… It takes ten years to build a proper brand: ‘fashion goes but style stays forever’. Never forget: turnover is for vanity, profit for sanity but only cash is reality… And if you’re not early, you’re late.”
Look into their eyes
But when entrepreneurs ask him to help, he knows what he’s looking for. “I look into their eyes, not their balance sheets. I want to know they’re really committed, they’ve got skin in the game, and they’re team players. And I want to understand the vision and the long-term exit strategy. Is there a simple, sustainable path to profit?”
Finally, after more than fifty years in business, James Espey believes you should always leave room for wellbeing: “No one on their deathbed ever said they wish they’d spent more time in the office!”